Notebooks are commonly used by students in educational settings such as schools and universities. The notebooks typically are made up of plurality paper sheets and include a binding that binds the sheets together. The notebook may include a set of holes through its thickness so that the notebook can be received in a conventional external binder, such as a three ring binder. The rings of the external binder are passed through the holes in the notebook to attach the notebook to the external binder. A line of perforations may be provided in each sheet in the notebook such that a portion of the paper can be neatly torn away from the notebook. The perforations are typically located between the binder-receiving holes and the edge of the paper. Thus, when such a notebook is retained in a three ring binder, in order to remove a sheet of paper the notebook must be removed from the external binder before the sheet can be torn along its perforations and removed. This requires additional time and effort to remove the sheet of paper, and increases the wear upon the binding mechanism in the external binder.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,773,676 to Showering discloses sheets of continuous stationary that can be divided into individual sheets. Each sheet 10 includes a set of longitudinally-extending holes located along the longitudinal edges 17, 19 of the sheet 10. The holes adjacent the edges 17, 19 are feed holes that are shaped to interact with a feed wheel in printers, accounting machines, and the like for advancing the sheets 10. Thus the feed holes are not located to receive a standard sized binder, and therefore the sheets 10 shown in the Showering reference cannot be mounted into a standard-sized binder. A second set of longitudinally-extending set of holes 27 are located adjacent a longitudinally-extending score line 16. The second set of holes 27 are also not located to receive a standard sized binder, and therefore the torn sheets provided by the sheet 10 can not be received in a standard sized binder. Accordingly, there is a need for a notebook that can be received in an external binder, wherein the notebook that provides sheets of paper that can be removed from the folder without having to open the binding mechanism of the external binder. It is further preferred that the removed sheets be shaped to be received in a conventional external binder after the sheets have been removed from the notebook.
The present invention is a notebook which can be received in an external binder, and which provides sheets that can be removed from the notebook without opening the binding mechanism of the external binder. The removed sheets can themselves be received in an external binder after they have been removed from the notebook.
More particularly, the present invention is a notebook comprising a plurality of paper sheets. Each of the sheets includes a first set of holes for receiving an external binder therethrough, the first set of holes having a longitudinal spacing pattern. Each sheet also includes a second set of holes for receiving an external binder therethrough, the second set of holes having a longitudinal spacing pattern corresponding to the longitudinal spacing pattern of the first set of holes. Each sheet includes a set of perforations extending between the first and second set of holes such that a portion of the sheet containing the second set of holes may be manually separated from a portion of the sheet containing the first set of holes. The notebook also includes binding means for binding the plurality of sheets together.
The present invention is also directed to a single paper sheet. In this embodiment, the invention is a paper sheet comprising a first set of holes for receiving an external binder tberethrough and a second set of holes for receiving an external binder therethrough. The second set of holes are laterally aligned with the first set of holes. The sheet further includes a set of perforations extending between the first and second set of holes such that a portion of the sheet containing the second set of holes may be manually separated from a portion of the sheet containing the first set of holes.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawings.